


Trials & Tribulations

by NighttimePhilosopher



Series: Amedot Gem Egg Hell [4]
Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: A cat - Freeform, F/F, Feral Gems (Steven Universe), Gem Egg Hell, Gemlings, Gen, Grooming, Grumpy gemling, Guilt, Hormones, I have a billion gemling headcanons and they're all in this, Nursing, POV Second Person, POV Third Person, Purring, Sibling Bonding, Sibling Love, Sibling Rivalry, Swearing, kneading, protective!Amethyst
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-17
Updated: 2018-03-06
Packaged: 2018-12-03 07:55:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 6,793
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11527896
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NighttimePhilosopher/pseuds/NighttimePhilosopher
Summary: (Noooo, I didn't take the name from Ace Attorney 3, what're you talking about?? SHHhhh.)A collection of stories centering around my amedot Gem Egg Hell AU. The majority take place after the gemlings are laid/born.Latest chapter: Zabargad is foiled by a sandal. Amethyst laughs.





	1. More? Part 2

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! So this is a bit of a dumping ground for my amedot AU for Gem Egg Hell. It'll be inconsistent chronologically (babies will be different ages depending on chapters) and POV wise, and have AUs within my AU too. I also haven't finalised the gemlings' names so they might be 'baby/gemling' in some chapters and then have a name in others. They're the same babies though, nothing changes there. I hope you enjoy reading as much as I do writing! 
> 
> For this one, I was in the middle of a test and my brain went ‘wot if moar babies’ and I was like ‘okay.’  
> Would take place after my fic ‘More?’ where Amethyst and Peridot have another clutch of gemlings on the way (this time planned). This is an AU of my GEH (Gem Egg Hell) AU since the first clutch was an accident and Peri and Am don’t want any more babies – the two they’ve got is plenty hah. So ‘More?’ and this are AU/retconned to my main AU (that I’ll flesh out and explain one day I promise.)

The new babies were here and you _hated_ them.

Your mamas made you and your sister sit with them in _your_ nest where _you_ were born and where _you_ lived out your early days. And now it was _theirs_.

Peridot keeps the both of you to her as you watch Amethyst groom them. You hate how there’s _three_ of them and you hate how two of them are peridots. They endlessly whimper and grunt softly and you absolutely despise how your parents bend and cater to their every whim. They only hatched 20 hours ago, why were they suddenly so important? How come they were even more important than you when you’d existed longer?

The smaller gemlings couldn’t even lift their shaky heads for extended periods of time, and they weren’t going to be able to talk like you could for a long time yet. You watch the amethyst curl into a ball as Amethyst applies her tongue to her mane. It’s absolutely…abrasive.

Supposedly you were all together because you were a family and families spent time together, but you didn’t want anything to do with your new siblings. You don’t want them stealing _your_ time with your parents and you don’t like how they’ve changed everything. Because of them, nothing was going to be the same anymore.

Your attention is bought back to a perky little peridot mewling in your direction. She looks very similar to you and you wonder when she’s bigger if your parents will mistake you for her. Amethyst murmurs something and the baby is picked up in her large purple hand. Now the mewing gemling is being bought towards you. You curl into Peridot’s chest intolerantly, frowning.

Your amethyst sister makes a small noise and sticks a tentative hand out towards the excitable gemling. The little thing is wiggling in your carrier’s safe hand as she’s bought closer and your parents fawn over her energy. She was nothing different to you when you where that age. She was nothing new yet she got so much attention. In your mind, it wasn’t fair!

You hiccup in annoyance as she’s held closer and then you’ve had enough and you hiss threateningly, baring your fangs. You frighten the little baby and she flinches with a fearful squeak, setting off a chain reaction of the younger gemlings crying out for help, relaying the message of danger to your sire and carrier. You watch as the screeching peridot is pulled back to a gemmed chest and haphazardly comforted.

“Ugh, Zab!” Growls Amethyst as she tries to settle the upset babies. “Peri, d’you think-“

“On it.”

You feel Peridot standing up and you’re being taken to where all your toys are, surrounded by the white safety fence. You’re happy because you think your sire is going to play with you, despite the time of night it was. Sadly, you realise that that was actually a clue that you were being separated and excluded for your ‘undesired’ behaviour.

“no no no no no!!” you howl, raising your arms in a gesture to be picked up again. Peridot explains to you that you need to be quiet because the babies are trying to sleep. You know that they aren’t! You were just there!

She makes her way back to the nest and you scream your disapproval via high-pitched noises. She turns around and comes back and you feel proud that you still have authority over her. You ask to be picked up by again by raising your arms but she only grabs a toy from a pile and shoves it into your outstretched hands.

“You need to behave yourself now that you’re an older sister.” She tries to appeal to your pride by referring to your age. It works to the extent that you stop making ‘baby noises’; communicating through squeaks and mews. You realise that those make you like _them_. 

Peridot trots back to what she obviously finds more important and you keep from calling her back like you usually do. You look down to what was given to you. You squeeze it with your claws and it wheezes and squeaks. It’s a loud and obnoxious noise and you freeze to look at what you can of your mamas and siblings. The beach house is dark so you can’t see them too well, but you can see Peridot settling back protectively next to Amethyst. All goes quiet. You get a horrible, fantastic idea.

You put the squeaky toy in your mouth and bite down, creating a ridiculously loud squeaky noise. Amethyst and Peridot’s heads pop up and you hear a few baby whimpers. You make the sound consistent and it litters the Beach house before a yell pierces through, followed by a chorus of gemlings crying in fear.

“Zabargad!!”

You know you’re in for it now. Serves them right for ignoring you.


	2. Test

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Amethyst & Peridot put ‘the test of love’ to their gemlings.

The day was sleepy and quiet, not much going on in Amethyst’s room apart from a relaxing rest. An idea floated through Amethyst’s head and she decided to voice it.

“Hey, Peri?”

Peridot looked over with attentive eyes from balancing a curled-up Dream on her chest. The gemling’s kitten-like lilac form contrasted comfortably with Peridot’s sharp green. “Hmm?”

“Which of us d’you think the babies’ll come to if we called ‘em?” Amethyst asked, ignoring Zabargad, who sharply kneaded her rising and falling stomach as she sat on it.

Peridot looked confused. “Elaborate. I don’t gotch yo numbah.”

Dream squeaked as she didn’t sense Peridot’s arms close to her. Thin hands returned in amendment.

“If we stood at like, opposite ends of the sofa or somethin’ and called them to us. Who would they go to?”

“Oh!” Dream nearly flung off Peridot’s chest as the apple green gem sat up sharply. Luckily, the baby wasn’t too perplexed, nuzzling as arms continued to hold her. “We should test that out! Right now!”

Amethyst lazily smiled at her enthused mate, sitting up and scooping Zabargad, who nibbled her pudgy fingers. “Heheh, be prepared to be lonely, Peri-babe. I got the power of being the _food source_ on _my_ side!”

* * *

 

They decided to stand at opposite ends of the kitchen bench, Amethyst more towards the front door and Peridot in the direction of the warp pad. They’d placed the gemlings in the middle, between the stools there. Dream was still very sleepy and was lying down while Zabargad climbed over her, the peridot gemling turning her head back and forth between Amethyst and Peridot in curiosity.

“’Kay Peridot, you ready?” Amethyst whispered, avoiding raising her voice as to not excite the young gemlings just yet (they might’ve started coming towards her already if she’d done so).

Peridot gave a very Garnet-inspired thumbs up, and they both bent down on their haunches silently. Amethyst held up three fingers, then two, then one, and suddenly they were yelling and hooting and calling to their gemlings in a vocal game of tug of war. The tiny creatures looked bewildered – especially Dream, who was shocked awake – as their sire and carrier made clapping gestures with their hands, showing their biggest smiles and beckoning them over with their speech. Zabargad seemed the first to move so they both cooed to her.

“Heeeyy Zabby! Zab, c’mon Zab, c’mere and give me a _biiiig_ cuddle!”

“Zaaab! _Zabargad_! The _correct_ choice is over with _me_!!” Peridot pointed her thumb to herself proudly.

“No no, don’t listen to _her_ , Zabargad! _Me me me_!!”

The juvenile peridot seemed to decide fairly quickly who she wanted to go to. She trotted over to Peridot and chirped as the adult gem picked her up.

Peridot looked incredibly smug at Amethyst, her lips quirking. “Nyeh heh heh…”

Amethyst looked desperately over at the other amethyst in the room, pleading with Dream to come to her. “Dream!” she held out her arms for a cuddle. “Um, err, _Famethyst_?”

Dream’s deep eyes revealed her confusion to the world. She saw that her sibling had gone to her beckoning sire and reasoned that was where she needed to go. She sluggishly crawled the path to Peridot’s arms, and it didn’t matter how loud Amethyst got her raspy voice because Peridot already had two gemlings in her arms.

Amethyst fell forward and lay in a sad heap, her rear in the air. “B-But…I’m the _food mama_!”

Peridot nuzzled and kissed the clinging gemlings, who made happy noises at being praised. When she looked at her mate, she felt a pang of guilt upon looking into Amethyst’s defeated face.

“I’m just…really self-conscious about them liking me.” She mumbled as Peridot kneeled down next to her. “After…well, me not liking _them_ for a long time.”

Zabargad and Dream clambered out of Peridot’s grip, pattering to Amethyst’s sad chubby face and mimicking it.

“It’s okay to feel that way sometimes.” Peridot purred, bowing and resting her head in Amethyst’s mane. “It shows that you care. Just know that they love you.” As if on cue, the gemlings rubbed against Amethyst’s cheeks affectionately, each purring gently. “ _We_ love you.”

“Aww, you guys…Thanks…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A bit shorter than the usually but idc


	3. Protect

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What happens when a quartz’s hormones push her protective instincts too far?  
> (Peridot doesn’t get to see her newly-hatched gemlings because Amethyst prot ec. AU of normal AU.)

There were words in there, words amongst the low, feral growl that emanated from Amethyst’s throat as she lay curled and defensive in their nest. Peridot only needed the context to figure them out.

“Go away.”

“They’re mine too.” Peridot stated carefully, listening for the quiet peeps of her hatchling gemlings – gems that were _born_ , not _made_ – who were now just an hour old.

To that, Amethyst didn’t justify a response, instead shifting her body irritably and resting her head back down; deep and weary eyes flickering to Peridot now and again. Some tiny squeaks rose up and Amethyst resumed purring excitably, evident by the speed and volume of the noise. Peridot felt herself fall in love again, the sounds from her offspring temporarily making her forget the situation.

Amethyst was being overprotective of their gemlings.

She’d been different since she started showing, where over time, she’d slowly let everyone in the beach house touch her growing belly. Originally, Peridot was the only one allowed to touch it, admittedly giving her a giddy sense of pride. They were hers and Amethyst’s geodes, after all, and she never shied away from that.

Amethyst’s body expelled the fully grown eggs after 10 months, which was completely normal. Now without being over-encumbered all the time, Peridot expected Amethyst to be more comfortable and freed up so they could spend time together, but she dedicated a lot of the last month to fussing about the nest near the warp pad where they were kept.

Peridot respected that.

As laid geodes, their offspring were arguably more vulnerable and defenceless now that they were separate from Amethyst. If a stranger wanted to touch Amethyst’s pregnant belly, she could turn them away or Peridot could scare them off (yes, that happened once). But if someone threatened the geodes, they were different entities to Amethyst; they could easily separate and Amethyst would have to split her attention.

Peridot understood that. But she didn’t understand _this_.

Amethyst picked up the amethyst gemling by the scruff of its plain lavender clothing in her mouth to move it, giving Peridot a glimpse of just how tiny and kitten-like it was as it opened its little but wide mouth to mewl. She placed it back down again and by the bob of her head, Peridot inferred she was grooming the baby quartz.

“You’re not their only parent.” She tried to keep the frustration out of her voice as she watched on. Peridot eased closer and reached out a tentative hand. “And you know I wouldn’t hur-“

Amethyst’s mane flared up, the fibres erecting and sharpening like mini blades as she protected the now quiet gemlings from Peridot’s line of sight. “I said _back off_ , Peridot.”

Of course, Peridot shouldn’t have been surprised. Quartzes had fighting and defending built into their gemetic makeup. But the green gem considered herself _inside_ the bracket that came under being defended, not excluded like she was now.

“ _Amethyst!_ ” Peridot growled, an irritated vibration. She was getting upset. She just wanted to see her babies, but at this point, it was going to devolve into a fight!

The door to the temple opened, and a gust of heat let out as Garnet left the Burning room. She approached the scene coolly as Amethyst curled even tighter, letting out a weak warning noise. The fusion calmly kneeled and risked a gem against Amethyst’s silvery sharp mane, flattening it back down until it softened and dispersed again. Peridot just watched.

“Amethyst, I suggest you let Peridot introduce them to her scent so they know she’s not a stranger.”

“…fine.”

Garnet stood up without another word, adjusting her glasses in Peridot’s disbelieving direction before heading back into the temple, the doors shutting with a thwump.

Peridot cautiously looked back to Amethyst, who was now kind enough to stop growling. The former Homeworld gem carefully crawled onto the mattress and blankets that was their nest to meet her mate, who was now being tolerant. Amethyst sat up off the gemlings and Peridot headbutted her temple in an affectionate nuzzle, quelling any of the quartz’s hormone-induced irrational fears with lively purrs.

The babies started to squeal and squirm now that they were exposed to light and new sounds. Amethyst lay back down on her side, letting Peridot interact with them freely.

If Peridot had a heart, it would be bursting out of her chest with pride and love at what she and Amethyst created. A little amethyst and a little peridot, clinging to each other and squeaking together in confusion; shaky little movements and shrill, uncharted voices, beady black eyes and sharp little claws where their fingers ended. They were perfect.

She lay down next to the rumbly Amethyst, greeting them with gentle laps of her rough tongue over their scruffs. She brushed her scent against them and in return, they felt comfortable enough to cling to her uniform. Because she was distracted, she was surprised to feel plush lips press against her sensitive gem.

“I’m sorry…” mumbled Amethyst, meeting Peridot’s visored eyes.

Peridot shifted closer so that their gemlings were comfortably in between their chests. “I forgive you.”

Comfort and love had fully replaced the tension from before, and Peridot felt overjoyed and warm. A prickling sensation dotted her chest and it took a while for Peridot to realise she wasn’t overwhelmed with emotion. She looked down to see the amethyst and peridot kneading her chest with their needle-like claws.

“Ow. Owowow. W-What are they doing??”

Amethyst snorted messily. “They’re tryna get milk from you, mama Peri.”

“Oh.”

“Hand ‘em here.” Amethyst sighed happily. “I got this.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't wanna study anymore so I wrote this in procrastination. Also, I had another gem anatomy idea - Since in this AU gems have rough cat tongues for grooming, I thought it would be pretty unromantic and painful to lick another gem in a sensual/sexual sense, heh. So I'm thinking gems can change the texture of their tongue from rough to smooth at will by some biological, non-shapeshifting feat. What do you think?


	4. Kittens

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zabargad and Dream get a scary, fluffy visitor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was meant to post this last year on the 26th of December but then I bought the new Zelda. whoops.  
> Enjoy!

Being unsupervised was always something noteworthy to you. You found that, without adult authority supressing you, you could do anything you were normally scolded for. You could pull the stuffing out of Steven’s hand-me-down toys or nip at Dream. You could eat things that you weren’t allowed to or steal your sibling’s toys without repercussion; the exception being that if enough noise was made, people came over to investigate and reprimand - if they so happened to be around. Often, you used this to your advantage when Dream won a fight by squealing until someone came to lift her off you.

However, this session of unsupervised play would always be especially noteworthy to you.

Dream twitched in her sleep, splayed out on your shared comfort blanket as you tackle a teddy bear to the ground. You land with a soft _thwump_ on the floorboards, your claws hitched nastily in the toy’s pelt as you grip its vulnerable, recently stitched neck in your mouth, hoping to tear it again.   You growl in frustration, kicking it with your clothed feet in the hope of triumphing against the material, but the handiwork holds tight. You curse the lithe gem who did this, making a note to bite her the next time she tries to pet you. You completely disregard that it was repaired out of compassion.

You don’t notice the beach house door creak open, but you do notice a jingling sound, a noise that gets closer and closer. You turn and look past the white bars, freezing at the sight of a wild animal that had gotten inside and was padding directly towards your playpen. It’s bigger than you, with pointy ears, inaudible footsteps and a form covered in lavender fur. You decide you don’t like it at all.

It reaches your cage and stares at you from the outside with frightening wide eyes, the pupils abysmal. You stiffen and glare right back, scared without your mamas but brave enough to threaten it by poofing up the fibers in your blond hair and facing your body towards it so you look bigger. Dream sleeps, unaware.

The creature responds by rubbing into the bars with its flank, its fur feeding through in between the gaps. Its tail limply wraps around one of the bars and you growl softly, a light sound compared to your parents but carrying the same meaning of ‘back off’. You lick your lips with a tiny tongue, not wanting it any closer than it is now.

But of course, as a hungry earth mammal, bars don’t stop it from settling back on its haunches and easily leaping to perch atop them. You hiss and spit as it lands silently on your side of the fence, advancing towards you. You’re in danger, it’s going to eat you, and these terrified thoughts manifest in the pitch and urgency of your shrieks, screaming for your carrier, your sire, _anybody_ – even _Pearl_ – to get this fluffy predator away before it devours your gem. You skitter backwards, falling over yourself several times in a bid to preserve your existence. Dream is now awake and huddled on the other side of the pen - more flared up than you are due to the mass of her mane – providing support by hissing and peeping.

Its longer legs cover distance faster and now it’s close enough that its fur tickles your face and muffles your cries by getting in your mouth. You’ve gotten tangled in a blanket and it stands over you, a deep noise in its chest as it prepares to kill you. You curl up into a whimpering ball, smothered and squished by the animal with no hope left in sight. The sensation is actually quite soft, but you don’t release any of the tension in your form, waiting for your demise.

Then you feel something familiar; a rasping tongue grooming down your scruff. You whine, trying to shift away from the predator’s mouth but it keeps you there with a gentle paw at your side. You think, since its guard seems lowered, you will attack it. With a threatening yowl, you bat its chest and sink your claws in painfully, kicking with your lower legs to push it off you. However, your claws continue to clink on something over and over, and the silky, knotless fur covering the creature shields against a nasty grip.

What does happen is that the beast shifts off you, revealing light to you again. Before you can scramble away, those dilated eyes connect with yours and you find yourself blanketed with fluff. It curls around you, keeping you close as it continues to attempt to flatten down your hair with a small, gentle tongue. You realise, whilst making a low growl yourself, that the deep noise in its chest is actually a low purr, reverberating exactly like your carrier’s. You settle down some due to that fact.

After a while, you’re assured that this animal does not want to eat you. Dream seems to think so too, because you can’t hear her distressed calls anymore. This creature only desires to cuddle you, evident by how gentle its grip is on you. So gentle in fact that you can get up and trot away. You sit down safely next to Dream and she sniffs you while you keep your eyes on the fluffy being across from you.

It gets up and cautiously strides over, keeping its wide gaze on both of you. You both stand your ground, Dream letting out a little hiss. Instead of being deterred, the animal does the opposite and gently butts its soft head into you, pushing you right over with an upset squeak. Dream smacks at its nuzzling head as it tries and succeeds to do the same. It does all of this with a loving purr, curling around the both of you and catching you with broad paws.

Again, this is not so bad, but Dream seems frightened in the way she squirms. The fluffy creature amends by carefully grooming her mane, and you wonder due to its natural affection if this animal has babies of its own. You begin to knead the mammal’s belly since its fur is so soft, almost like your mama’s silky hair, and you take pleasure in the tufts trailing in between your fingers as you push and tug. Soon, you feel that you will fall asleep.

You startle at short gusts of breath on your face, pulling you out of your trance after an indeterminable amount of time. You open your eyes to feel a tongue swipe over you face, and now you’re truly awake, uncurling and mewing as the animal stands and saunters away noiselessly, save for that now telltale jingle. What was happening? Where was it going? Why did it think that licking your face was an acceptable way to rouse you?

Dream trots after it, taking many little steps to account for each long stride. You scamper after them, jumping at lengthy hind legs and nipping, only to fail at a proper grip every time. At the edge of the playpen, the being sits a final time. Dream stands on two feet and paps at the fur on the creature’s chest, and you take the time to take that sweeping tail in your mouth and scruff its beauty; for which you are then promptly shaken off.

It is clear that the fluffy animal is leaving. It swamps you and Dream in its tail, making you unprepared for when it leaps up onto the railing of the bars and jumps back down to the other side. You peep to it, already missing the texture of its fur.

Perhaps just for you, the mammal turns around and butts its head against the bars. You and Dream stick your tiny hands out and touch it one last time, chittering to it softly. It lifts its head to gaze at you, and its deep eyes don’t elicit fear anymore. As it stands to turn away, you catch a glimpse of something sparkling underneath the fur Dream was investigating. The same glimmer shines in the creature’s smiling eyes, and as you watch its departure, something tries to piece together in your head.

Amethyst finally comes back home a short time later in the midst of you and Dream grunting and wrestling. She doesn’t need to break you up because you both run to the white fence and tell her what happened through shrill and excited squeaking. She finds the story funny – she chuckles – and then she gathers you both up for a feed.

Being so close to her, you realize why you associated peace so quickly with being nestled in that animal’s pelt.

The scents are the same.


	5. Pearl

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dream meets another new gem.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hOH, another update??? You bet m8

“Oh my goodness, she’s _gorgeous_.”

Words from the outside world bleed into your consciousness, and you awaken slowly to find yourself face to face with your carrier, her deep eyes sparkling with happiness. She’s giving you a big dopey smile with those bright white teeth and waggling her pudgy purple fingers at you. Whatever you are laying on emanates a noticeable slight warmth.

“Heeeyy little baby, who’s lap are you sitting on? Who’re you hangin’ out with today, huh?” she coos, and you have no idea what she’s saying. You’re too young to understand what her words mean – she could be telling you her deepest secrets and you would never know. You just respond by introducing her to the inside of your mouth via a yawn.

“Awww, Pearl, did you see that?”

“No, I didn’t. What did she do? I can’t see her face from this angle.”

You attempt to blink away the sleep that hangs around you like a blanket and gain an understanding of where you are. You can hear your sister chirping and your sire babbling in the background, and you realise your mama is lying on the soft white sofa you’ve rested and played on before. You’re on top of the sofa too, but there’s a thin, semi-warm layer in between. It moves and you realise it’s another gem! You mew in surprise.

“Is it alright if I pick her up, Amethyst?”

“Yeah, go for it P.”

Thin hands come around your tummy, bigger than your sire’s, and you’re lifted up into the air. Your limbs splay out and stiffen and you let out a scared whimper, but your mama’s raspy voice breaks through your fear.

“It’s okay Dream, Pearl’s not gonna hurt you.”

Your mama is very excited to show you to this gem and it confuses you. You think that she smells lovely – different, but lovely - and maybe that’s the reason why. You come face to face with sharp cyan eyes that soften and show heart-meltage upon meeting your beady black.

“Oh my _goodness.”_ She gasps again and you wonder if she’s okay. Her eyes are sparkling. “Amethyst, look at this beautiful baby you’ve made. She’s _wonderful_.”

Your carrier averts her eyes and blushes. “Uhh, I had help, but yeeeah, she’s pretty cute.”

Fingers softly trail through your hair and you put your chubby fist in your mouth, content. “She looks just like you, but her hair is lighter. _White,_ even.”

Purple fingers poke at your tummy and you mewl. “Yeah, she’s our pure little princess. Her personality didn’t come from either of _us_ , that’s for sure.”

A sharp chirp pierces yours and everyone’s attention, and you look to your peridot sibling in your sire’s arms who is getting knots nibbled out of her triangular fluff.

“That little rascal though, _hoh boy_. She’s me and Peri _combined_.”

“She certainly wouldn’t be as bad as _you_ when we first found you in the Kindergarten.” Says the gem cradling you, in a tone you know means something but you’re not sure what.

Your carrier pokes out her tongue with a grumpy expression in response, so you mirror her actions, making a little whiny grunt. She sees you and it brightens up her face, making her smile warmly.

The other gem’s voice cuts in. “Let me hold her too. I want to see just how much her reputation precedes her.”

“Alright, if you say so…don’t say I didn’t warn you...”

You’re lowered back into the white gem’s lap, where your fluffy head bobbles with the effort of you holding it up. You plan to curl up and go back to sleep when your sister is placed next to you on the white gem’s lap. You’re fine with that, but she doesn’t seem to be. She makes an agitated high-pitched noise, and when friendly hands gently hover to pet her, she swipes her claws and hisses, striking you by accident. The white gem gasps as you flinch.

You bury your face in her tummy and fluff your mane out in defence as your sibling’s screeching distances. It didn’t hurt much but now you can’t calm a frightened feeling in your chest. If your sister is agitated then so are you.

That lessens a little when hands smooth down your erect hair, making sure you’re okay. There’s a sort of chuckle from the new gem, but it’s nowhere near like the vibrant ones you’ve heard from your parents. It’s weak, still jovial, but calmer and reflective. “I don’t seem to have a good track record of making good first impressions with peridots, do I?”

Your carrier guffaws and you feel a little safer. “Yeah, well you sorta punched the first one you met in the face!” She holds her belly and she shakes with laughter.

You peek out the gaps her fingers make and see your peridot sister held against your sire’s chest, spitting at the tall gem who shelters you.

“We just require longer amounts of time to become acquainted with others.” Your sire states, recognizably annoyed by her twitched mouth and slitted eyes. “Caution is necessary for continuous survival, especially as a gemling from a smaller caste of gem.”

You push against the pale hands protecting you, feeling braver. They fall away and you shake yourself, before you tilt your head to the side as you make eye contact with the new gem.

She lifts you again, surely higher than you’ve ever been before because you can see the white oval gem that decorates her forehead in its full glory. Your new friend cheers at you and you squeak back in excitement, your limbs trembling. You nestle against her thin chest when she lowers you again; She’s not soft like your parents but you can forgive her.

Your carrier rumbles from the side. “Heheh, looks like curiosity is pretty important too.”

There’s a huff from your sire, who is attempting to avoid Zabargad’s investigative hands as they reach and try to open her mouth.

“What’s the matter?” the new gem chuckles. “Gemling got your tongue?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Idk what I was tryna say there. I’ve had this one chilling out the back for a while and it just needed an ending. Begone from my gemlings wips!!!
> 
> (secondary new years resolution: clean out all my wips???)


	6. Grumpy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Something keeps the normally peaceful Dream grumpy and awake.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AU of normal AU for a spoiler reason

Dream was a very content gemling, happy to fall asleep in someone’s arms or somewhere soft at the drop of a hat. But the little amethyst that Steven bought to Amethyst’s temple door in the middle of the night was entirely the opposite. Steven passed over a loud, fluffy, irritable bundle of sadness.

“She was crying so hard I could hear her through my headphones.” Steven explained, his tired, chubby face expressing concern as Amethyst pat the wailing baby on the back. Ever since the gemlings hatched, he wore soundproof headphones to bed so that his sleep wouldn’t be disrupted by their high-pitched vocalisations.

“Pro’ly a nightmare or somethin’.” Amethyst nuzzled Dream’s wet cheek, yawning. “Thanks for getting me.”

“It’s fine, I just hope she’s okay.”

“She will be. Sorry you hafta be up so late.”

Amethyst watched Steven reascend his stairs before pacing the short length of the baby fence they’d set up near the sofas. Dream clung onto her shoulder, clenching her top’s fabric in her little hands as she dribbled on Amethyst’s skin, semi-muffling herself. Amethyst stroked fingers through her white mane and tried to calm her down with soothing purrs, but it didn’t seem to make any difference. Dream kept crying loudly and didn’t show any signs of stopping, prominently uncharacteristic of her.

“Zabby, you got any ideas on why Dream is crying?” Amethyst asked her other gemling, who had been quietly watching from inside the white fence the whole time. She held one of Steven’s stuffed bears in one hand and with the other asked to be picked up, completely disregarding that her sibling was upset. Amethyst checked Dream for signs of a tussle between the two but found nothing. She concluded trying to settle Dream in the beach house was just going to cause trouble for Steven’s sleep-wake cycle, so she trotted to her door.

Peridot was waiting on the inside, curiosity and then pity on her face when she saw Dream. “She’s still not calm?”

“Nope. And I’ve tried the usual stuff too.”

“Purring?”

“Can you _hear_ my chest, Peri?” Amethyst snarled sarcastically, which earned a flinch. She sighed and rubbed her eyes, observing her squealing offspring. “She’s really cranky about something and I hate not bein’ able to _do_ anything, y’know?”

The little gemling squeezed Amethyst for a few acute seconds before releasing, making a short, restless grunt over and over again.

Peridot pressed herself to the quartz and their offspring to get a better look and to try to comfort via her own purring. “She sounds like she’s experiencing pain. Maybe she consumed something she wasn’t meant to? A part from one of Steven’s toys, perhaps?”

“But they can eat like, _anything_ , Peridot. Super stomach acid to break down rocks, remember?”

Peridot hummed. “She requires to…defecate…?”

“She’s never needed to before. Her tummy breaks down and absorbs everything that goes in. Plus, she can’t shapeshift a pooper yet.”

“R-Right. And this isn’t her hungry cry either.” Peridot took a breath, moving a hand to the baby’s chest and earning a pap from a tiny fist. “No evident damage to her gemstone?”

“No chips, n-no nothin’.” There was a waver in Amethyst’s tone, causing Peridot to pay attention to her face. Amethyst’s brow was raised in constant concern and she held her jaw uncomfortably. Peridot realised that this was the first time that one of the gemlings was showing a real cause for concern, and that they really had no backup information to help them. They didn’t know gemlings could even be created until Amethyst was pregnant. The potential for something very wrong to be underlying suddenly made her understand Amethyst’s emotion.

“O-Okay.” She thought back to Steven’s advice on handling a situation akin to this. “Let’s get comfortable and figure this out.”

“Yeah…”

They got back into bed, with the wiggling Dream placed in between them. Peridot rested a hand on the scruffy gemling’s tummy, which Amethyst then covered with her own larger hand. Dream continued to fuss despite being comforted by both of her progenitors. She kicked her little feet and cried grumpily, shoving her fist in her mouth and drooling around it.

Amethyst attempted to pluck it out gently. “Stop eatin’ your hand, yuckies.”

But Dream whined in annoyance, her face becoming a darker lavender as she cried harder. Amethyst let her resume to try to appease her, but now she seemed even worse, her yelps becoming strained and hoarse.

“She keeps putting her hand in her mouth, but she’s shown she doesn’t have an appetite. What is she trying to communicate with us?” Peridot gave Dream’s free fist a twiddle and the baby quartz looked up with big, sad eyes, absent of the peace that could usually be found there.

“Well, she was really gummin’ up my shoulder.”

“Gumming?”

“Yeah,” Amethyst clicked her white, blunt teeth together. “biting, but without teeth. Sorta like…oh…”

Peridot tilted her head. “Amethyst?”

Determination glimmered in Amethyst’s eyes. “Think you can help me get her to keep her mouth open?”

Peridot blinked in confusion. “Okay…”

The next five minutes consisted of the concerned gems apologizing to their uncooperative, wailing gemling as they tried to get her to keep her mouth open long enough for Amethyst to investigate her theory. Pointy claws wedged into the skin of poking hands as Dream reached the limit of her tolerance. Amethyst cooed to her, glad that they were inside her room because her offspring was going off like a siren. Zabargad, unknowing that they were trying to help her sister, probably would’ve lost trust in them upon listening to Dream’s unhappy growls and shrieks.

“Gotcha!” exclaimed Amethyst suddenly, Dream still fidgeting and whining about the invasive fingers in her mouth. “ _Voila!_ ”

Peridot arched a brow, leaning over to peer into the gummy cavern that was Dream’s gurgling mouth. There, barely peeking out of the infant’s gums, was the tip of a sharp, white tooth.

“How did that get there?!” yelped Peridot.

“She’s _teething!_ Like a human kid!”

“D-Define teething.” Peridot demanded, fiddling with her fingers anxiously. “How is there a tooth there?!”

“She’s growing in her first tooth, dummy!” Amethyst’s face brightened in relief and her voiced picked up excitedly. “Steven did this when he was a baby too! It’s so she can eat food instead of relying on getting everything she needs from me.” Amethyst explained, letting Dream’s sore little mouth go and instead cradling her to reassure to the baby her affection. The gemling shook herself, and continued to sob fat, blobby tears at Amethyst while chewing her fist, the issue not yet resolved. “But, she’s gotta be so achy…”

“Oh. A biological mechanism timed with growth rate to cater for an infant’s ever-growing independence by allowing for more diverse consumption. Gemings truly present _many_ surprises.” Peridot pondered, trailing her hand over Dream’s scalp soothingly. The baby closed her eyes and tried to derive comfort from the action, quieting down some. “What do we do now?”

“I remember Greg having these firm plasticky ring things for Steven when he was teething. I’ll see if he has any left.” Amethyst stood up, handing Dream to Peridot. She gave her suffering offspring a kiss on the forehead, already heading for the door. “Keep doing that scratchy thing.”

Peridot sat with Dream, feeling awkward and anxious that she couldn’t immediately do anything to ease her baby’s pain. She tried soothing a finger over Dream’s round jaw, but the whole area seemed to be inflamed because the gemling’s whimpering picked up again, and she batted at Peridot’s hand.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry…” Peridot fretted, bowing her head to Dream at her chest in an attempt to apologize. She continued to pet Dream’s head until her mate came back with a bluish circlet-like object. Amethyst squatted down and presented the squishy toy-like object to Dream.

“Washed it and put it in cold water.” She explained briefly, more intent on giving Dream relief than anything else.

The amethyst gemling looked curious, momentarily ignoring the evident discomfort she was experiencing to take it in a tiny hand. Her beady eyes, watery from expelling tears, traced over the firm aqua plastic. She decided to grip it with two hands and examine it further, her palms taking in the slightly cool temperature it emanated.

Amethyst ended up just nudging it forward to press against her face, which instigated Dream to investigate further by putting it in her mouth. It clicked almost instantly for her, and she started to bite down and chew, finding the cold temperature soothing against her aching gums. To Amethyst and Peridot’s amusement, she started to mewl happily, the sound coming out fragmented to sound like ‘nom nom nom’.

They were also very happy to hear her purring for the first time that night. They knew it was temporary duct tape on a filled kiddy pool with an indeterminable rip, but as they settled to cuddle Dream to sleep, they knew it was just another thing they’d assist her in riding out. They didn’t know how long it was going to last, and they didn’t understand what it felt like, but one thing they knew was that they’d be there for Dream no matter what.

That’s what they were there for, as ‘parents’.

And then two days later, at one in the morning, with sound-proof headphones half on his head and his face flinching at the noise, came Steven with a screaming Zabargad in his arms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Slight AU to my normal gem AU since babies will always have teeth when they hatch.
> 
> Im actually sticking to my resolution?? How good is this?? I'll read over this tomorrow 'cause im a bit sleepy and was listening to Gorillaz while I was editing so there might be something i don't like that i didn't see


	7. Footwear

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zabargad is foiled by a sandal. Amethyst laughs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hheckin started university. I'm doing good tho yay.  
> Also Amethyst and Peridot are absolutely the type of parents that swear in front of their kids, you can't take this from me

“Did you seriously get stuck in a fuckin’ sandal? Ohoh man, that’s a hoot.”

Snickers bubbled from Amethyst’s lips as she surveyed the scene in front of her. Between the pink strap and base, Zabargad had somehow pinned and tangled herself in one half of Steven’s signature footwear. The tiny green gemling’s own weight was a strength against her as she tried and tried again to stand up, only to be abruptly stopped by the strap pressing into her back. She growled and fought with the footwear but it only ended up flipping so that the sandy base obscured most of her kitten-like form from Amethyst.

Amethyst cackled, wishing she was filming this right now.

Zabargad shrieked, the sandal wracked with trembles as she kicked and clawed at it. When she still couldn’t free herself, the squeals quickly devolved into distressed whimpering and crying. Amethyst quickly came to her gemling’s aid.

“Okay okay, don’t flip a lid, I gotcha.” She soothed, kneeling and wiggling the sandal until Zabargad fell out of it with a little _thwump_. “There we go.”

Zabargad sobbed up at her saviour, immediately attempting to scale Amethyst by latching onto her leg with prickling little claws. The adult gem could only chuckle.

“Awww, hey, c’mere.” 

With one hand, she nabbed up the bawling baby - clawed fingers detaching from fabric with tiny pops - the poor hiccupping mess clinging to her desperately when bought to her chest. Amethyst pressed her lips to Zabargad’s forehead and the gemling nuzzled into her shoulder with her pointy nose, settling down instantly. Zabargad purred rapidly, satisfied.

“Oh. That was easy…” Amethyst closed her eyes peacefully, only to feel a certain someone wiggling and prodding at her chest seconds later. “ _Heeyy_ , _quit it_!! No consolation snacks! _”_  

Zabargad shrieked her disapproval. Amethyst felt immediate regret for spoiling her offspring.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> little shits do not interact.
> 
> If I used ‘thong’ then like 80% of my audience would think I was talking about weird swimwear, and I WAS NOT using fukgin ‘flip flops’ because that is such a stupid ass name, so sandal it was. All people get that, im pretty sure. STEVENS SHOES. The pink squeakies!!! Zabargad got stuck in one!!!!!! Where I live we call them thongs!!!!!!!!!!!!! I sorta jumped onto a topic you weren’t expecting and got very passionate about it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! SORRY
> 
> Also please feel free to yell at me about what you want me to update next.


End file.
